Being a victim of Identity theft can be the most unpleasant of ordeals. The credit companies and banks can be very sympathetic in the long term. However, in the short term, the victim is also looked upon with a level of suspicion. In most cases, banks and credit companies will have no option but to write off these debts run up through your account. They will not do so without a struggle. Because identity theft is such a calculated act, it is possible that some unscrupulous bank account or credit card holder staged their own case of fraud, in order to earn some instant cash.

Statistics show that identity card thefts do cost the banks and credit card companies as well as online and offline stores sums running into tens of billions of per year. So it's understandable from the outset that the victim also becomes the suspect.

When the realization falls upon you that you have become a victim of identity theft, the first thing that you have to do is minimize damage. Don't wait for anyone else to do this for you, set the wheels in motion to saving your creditworthiness.

For identity theft victims, fast detection is critical. According to the American Federal Trade Commission (FTC), credit card theft victims who were sufficiently vigilant to notice that something was afoot in their personal banking suffered less damage. They were able to freeze their bank account and credit cards sooner and in 90% of the cases, all forms of illegal trading dried up on the spot. Credit card companies, in any event, cannot charge their customers more than $50 on purchases made illegally through their account. In many cases, they are even prepared to waive even this token amount, in appreciation of their client's alertness that probably saved them many thousands of dollars.

Despite that, cases have been reported where victims do act according to the book, do everything right and yet it still takes them years to handle and settle all the problems that have been forced on them by being unwitting victims of this cruel and humiliating form of theft. At one time, people said that housebreaking was the worst kind of theft, with the thought of people rummaging through your private property and stealing items often of irreplaceable sentimental value. However, there are those that say that identity theft is worse, as your identity has been taken from you and the complications that can be caused by it can cover every aspect of your life.

Prevention is the best from of cure in identity theft, and anyone who has involved in handling cases will tell you this till they are blue in the face! Banks, credit card companies, insurance companies, police authorities, the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Federal Trade Commission will never stop emphasizing how important it is to them and to the consumer at large to prevent the spread of identity theft.

And the only totally effective of way of doing so is to instill deep into the consciousness of the consumer the importance of guarding their personal details. Never divulge them to people that you don't know and trust. Never transmit details of your bank account numbers or credit card numbers to any internet web site that appears even remotely suspicious to you.

If you buy something in a retail store, keep your receipt with your credit card details on it. Tear it up and throw it away later when nobody is looking. That slips contains access to credit card details and is invaluable to the credit card thieves.

These are just a few examples of the self discipline that this new reality has imposed on us all. Not difficult to maintain, but if done so, will protect the consumer from the hands of the people who are lurking in the dark corners of cyberspace; who would steal your identity and cause you personal discomfort and suffering far and away above the financial reward that they gain. Why give them the opportunity? A little bit of extra care and attention will freeze them out forever.